Pivot mounting for looms and the like



R. A. LITTLEJOHN PIVOT MOUNTING FOR LOOMS AND THE LIKE Flled Sept 6 1946 Aug. 24, 1948.

' INVENTOR. P0556 7 14. L/TTLEJOfi/V Patented Aug. 24, 1948 PIVOT MOUNTING FOR LOOMS AND THE LIKE Robert A. Littlejohn, Danville, Va., assignor to Dan River Mills, Incorporated, a corporation of Virginia Application September 6, 1946, Serial No. 695,199

Claims. I

This invention relates to loom construction, and more particularly to the construction of looms having an automatic bobbin transfer mechanism for replenishing the filling supply.

Looms of the above type in which the filling supply is automatically replenished are well known in the art. Commonly, th automatic transfer mechanism comprises a fulcrumed arm which is regularly reciprocated by a cam surface during operation of the loom, and a feeler mechanism adapted to detect filling exhaustion and transmit the motion of the fulcrumed arm upon filling exhaustion to eifect replenishment of the filling supply.

- According to the usual arrangement, the above mentioned fulcrumed arm is supported by a bushing mounted on the loom frame. This bushing is provided with an integral flange or collar to retain the arm against sidewise movement, and the bushing is conventionally made of soft metal so that it may be filed by a loom fixer to the required transverse dimension to support the arm in proper operating adjustment.

As the fulcrumed arm is reciprocated regularly during operation of looms, these soft metal bushings are short lived and require frequent replacement. Moreover, the replacement is tedious and troublesome because the loom fixer'must determine the proper transverse dimension for the bushing by trial which involves installing and removing the bushing for additional filing a number of times until the required transverse dimension has been obtained. Frequently, this results in spoiling a bushing because the additional filing needed must be estimated after each trial, and when this estimate is excessive the process of fitting must be started again with a new bushing.

According to the present invention these disadvantages are obviated by providing a supporting member for the fulcrumed arm comprising a cylindrical body portion forming a bearing surface to accommodate the reciprocating motion of the fulcrumed arm, and a collar portion adjustably associated with the body portion so that the fulcrumed arm may be positioned on the body portion in proper operating adjustment. By arranging the supporting member in this manner the fulcrumed arm is easily adjusted in proper operating position, and hardened metal may be used so as to provide an eflicient and serviceable bearing surface.

The present invention is illustrated in. the accompanying drawing, in which:

Fig. 1 is a detail in elevation illustrating the above mentioned operating elements of an automatic bobbin transfer mechanism of a loom;

Fig. 2 is a vertical section showing the supporting member for the fulcrumed arm illustrated in Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is an assembly detail showing the relation of the body portion and collar portion of a supporting member arranged according to the present invention;

Fig '4 is a right end view of the body portion shown in Fig. 3;

Fig. 5 is a left end view of the body portion shown in Fig. 3;

Fig. 6 is a right end view of the collar portion shown in Fig. 3; and,

Fig. '7 is a vertical section of the supporting member in mounted position showing the body portion and collar portion in quarter section.

Referring first to Fig. 1 of the drawing, the fulcrumed arm of the automatic bobbin transfer mechanism is indicated generally by the numeral Ill. The arm in is formed at one end with a follower surface If disposed in relation to a cam 12. As previously mentioned, the arm I ll is reciprocated regularly during operation of the loom by the cam l2, the cam l2 making one revolution for each cycle of operation of the loom. An adjustable joint !3 is provided in the arm Ill so that the follower surface Il may be adjusted in relation to the cam H! to regulate the position of arm Ill.

The arm I0 is fulcrumed on the supporting member shown in Fig. 1 at M, which is attached to the loom frame as described more in detail below. The other end of the arm H] extends to a slide mechanism illustrated generally at l5, which is also supported on the loom frame as indicated at [6. This slide mechanism I 5 is of conventional design and is arranged for actuation by reciprocation of arm l0 through cam l2. Theslide mechanism I5 includes the usual feeler fork l1 which cooperates with a grid carried by the lay (not shown) to detect filling exhaustion. As is well known, the filling fork I1 is pivoted according to such an arrangement as long as the filling supply is adequate so that the reciprocation of arm I0 is an idle motion. But when the filling supply is exhausted, this condition is detected by the filling fork H and the motion of arm I0 is transmitted through slide mechanism 5 to actuating elements (as indicated at l8 in Fig. 1) for the transfer mechanism to effect replenishment of the filling supply. As noted above, mechanisms of this type are commonly incorporated in looms so that further detailed description is not considered necessary.

The supporting member I4 of the present invention which carries the arm I0 is illustrated more in detail in Fig. 2. This supporting member l4 includes a body portion I9 which is cylindricalin form to provide a bearing surface supporting the arm l0 for reciprocation. A collar portion 20 is associated with body portion ill to retain the arm I!) in place. As previously mentioned, the collar portion 20 has heretofore been formed integrally with the body portion I 9. According to, the present invention, the collar portion is is adjustably associated with the body portion I9 as illustrated in Fig. 3. For this purpose, the collar portion 20 is formed with a threaded shank 22' adapted to engage the interiorly threaded surface 22 (see Fig. 4) of body portion I9.

The supporting member I4 isattached to the loom frame (indicated by the numeral'2'3 in Figs. 2 and 7) by means of a bolt 24 fitted with a nut 25 and washer 26. At the point of attachment for the supporting member I4, the loom frame 23 is formed with a slotted opening to receive lugs 21 disposed on the face of body portion I9 as shown best in Figs. 3 and 5. These lugs 21 key the body portion I9 to the frame 23 and thus prevent displacement of the body portion by reciprocation of the arm 16. The attaching bolt, 24 passes through openings 28 and 29 formed in the body portion I9 and collar portion 26, respectively. The opening 25! in collar portion 201s formed square (see Fig. 6) to fit a square shank portion 30 of bolt 24 so that the collar portion 2t! may be locked in adjusted position.

The assembled arrangement of supporting member I4 is shown more in detail in Fig, '7. To mount the arm'lll, the body portion: 1'9 with the associated collar portion 20 is placed in arm Ill and then presented to the frame 23. so as to locate the lugs 21 in the above mentioned slotted openings provided in the frame. The bolt 24 is then fitted through the openings 29 and 2B in the collar portion 20 and body portion l9, and the washer 26 and nut 25 are fixed in place loosely. The collar portion 20 may then be adjusted to position the arm III on body portion I9 properly for operation. When the proper adjustment has been made the nut 25 is tightened up to secure the supporting member I4 in place and lock the collar portion 20 in adjusted position with respect to body portion I 9.

An important advantage of the supporting member l i arranged in accordance with the present invention is the feature 'of positive adjustment in mounting the arm it). The method of trial heretofore required is obviated by the present invention, so that the tedious and troublesome problem of replacement is avoided. Also, as the adjustment is made positive, the supporting member may be made of hardened metal, so as to provide an adequate bearing surface for arm I!) and reduce the necessity for replacement to a minimum.

While the supporting member of the present invention has been illustrated and described above in connection with its adaption as a pivot mounting for the fulcrumed arm of an automatic bobbin transfer mechanism, it is also applicable as a mounting for pivoted elements in loom construction generally and for other pivoted machine elements.

I claim:

1. A supporting member adapted as a pivot mounting in loom construction comprising a cylindrical body portion forming a bearing surface to accommodate pivoting motion of a loom element, a collar portion adjustably associated with said body portion for positioning said loom element on said body portion, and means for attach.- ing said body portion and collar portion to a loom 4 frame and for locking said collar portion in ad justed relation with respect to-said body portion.

2. A supporting member adapted as a pivot mounting for pivoted machine elements comprising a cylindrical body portion forming a bearing surface to accommodate pivoting motion of a machine element, said cylindrical body portion having an interiorly threaded surface, a collar portion associated with said body portion for positioning said machine element on said body portion, said collar portion having a threaded shank engaging the interiorly threaded surface of said bod portion for adjustment of said collar portion with respect to said body portion, and means for mounting said body portion and collar portion to support said machine element and for locking said collar portion in adjusted relation with respect to said body portion.

3. A supporting member adapted as a pivotmounting for pivoted machine elements comprising a cylindrical body portion forming a bearing surface to accommodate pivoting'motion of a machine element, said cylindrical body portion having an interiorly threaded surface, a, collar portion associated with said body portion for positioning said machine element on said body portion, said collar portion having a threaded shank engaging the interiorly threaded surface of said' body portion for adjustment of said collar portionv with respect to said body portion, and said collar portion and shank being formed with axial openings, and a bolt member extending through said openings for mounting'said supporting member to support said machine element and for locking said collar portion in adjusted relation with respect to said body portion.

4. A supporting element as defined in claim 5: and further characterized in that the axial opening in said collar portion is formed with a square configuration and said bolt member is formed with a shank having a complementary cross-section whereby said collar portion and bolt member may be interfitted and locked against relative rotation.

5. A supporting member adapted as a. pivot mounting for the filling cam arm of a transferframe and for locking said collar portion in ad'- justed relation with respect to said body portion.

ROBERT A. LITTLEJOHN.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES. PATENTS,

Number Name Date 837,110 Owen Nov. 27, 1906 1,067,941 Sawyer July 22, 1913 1,783,446 Overbury Dec. 2, 1930 FOREIGN. PATENTS Number Country Date:

Great Britain May 31, 1923 

